Bishop-elect Vono has a tough road ahead. The 2002 through 2008 experience for Rio Grande was a train wreck with Members down 20 percent, ASA down 28 percent, and Plate & Pledge adjusted for inflation down 29 percent. Using these data I ranked the diocese at 94 of 95 considered. And it is Aging with 166 Infant Baptisms and 236 Burials in 2008. And in 2008 28 of its 53 churches had ASA of 70 or less with 11 of the 28 having ASA of 20 or less. And Money is not good with 34 of its 53 churches with Plate & Pledge of less than $150K in 2008. And Bishop Frey will have a culture shock when he leaves the Blue State of New Mexico and returns to the Red State of Texas. (His favorite derisive comment to TEC gatherings back in Colorado was to refer to the TEC as the Republican Party at prayer.) I suspect that Bishop-elect Vono will find the Blue State of New Mexico to be enchanting. Statmann
It will now be even more of a divided diocese than it was — until more of the orthodox leave, at which point Blessed Unity and Reconciliation will occur! ; > )
The Episcopalians have the right to enforce their ever-changing doctrine among themselves but what strikes me is their big seminaries (Seabury-Western and General) are closing or about to and they’re skimming off liberal RC priests (probably just as well that they go, though). (Vono’s at least a former seminarian.)
The fact is many faithful reasserting churches, priests, and laity had already left the diocese since their previous bishop left for Rome. There are some reasserters left but as in most Dioceses they are a small minority.
This election is stunning in that the candidate with a terrible history did so well in the first ballot. The two reasserter candidates never had a chance and the fear was the worse candidate was in the lead and might get elected….if so, I suspect there would further exodus from the diocese as there might be now.
I do hope the reasserting laity find out how their priests voted, especially in the first ballot. It is quite important to find this out. Clergy are quite good at slight of hand and keeping the laity in the dark. But I bet their deputies to the electing convention will be proud of their choice and quite open and vocal about itl. As clergy, are also good at getting people who will vote in agreement with them, if the laity voted for the candidate it is likely the priest do so also. It really is not that hard to figure out…and if the priest is an honest the priest will have no problem saying who they voted for. The more prevarication the more likely you will not like their answer.
But it is time to find out. Like in Upper SC, it was the clergy who are mostly liberal the laity are not…but the clergy got what they wanted because they know how to work the system and Henderson made sure who he allowed into his diocese.
Time to realize this fact. Bishops and their Canons to the Ordinary are the gate keepers of dioceses. If you wonder how such liberal priests got into your diocese, it is because the Bishop and his/her gate keeper (deployment officer) wanted them in the diocese.
It was not an accident. It was an intentional decision. Control who the priests are and you can control the political theological direction and agenda of the diocese. This is the case at General Convention these days.
Learn who is the Bishop’s gate keeper in your diocese….it will help you to understand why your diocese is going in the direction it is going. Many of your questions will then answer themselves.
#4, MichaelSean, Thanks for the explanation. I just noticed how the vote changed after the first ballot. If it is as you say, the Bishop and the Canon are the gatekeepers of the diocese, then I would say that the Diocese of SC is in good hands at the moment. Not to the mention the strong standing committee and chancellor we have.
Here the reasserters are a definite majority and the revisionists are a vocal but small minority (ie The Episcopal Forum of South Carolina).
Bishop-elect Vono has a tough road ahead. The 2002 through 2008 experience for Rio Grande was a train wreck with Members down 20 percent, ASA down 28 percent, and Plate & Pledge adjusted for inflation down 29 percent. Using these data I ranked the diocese at 94 of 95 considered. And it is Aging with 166 Infant Baptisms and 236 Burials in 2008. And in 2008 28 of its 53 churches had ASA of 70 or less with 11 of the 28 having ASA of 20 or less. And Money is not good with 34 of its 53 churches with Plate & Pledge of less than $150K in 2008. And Bishop Frey will have a culture shock when he leaves the Blue State of New Mexico and returns to the Red State of Texas. (His favorite derisive comment to TEC gatherings back in Colorado was to refer to the TEC as the Republican Party at prayer.) I suspect that Bishop-elect Vono will find the Blue State of New Mexico to be enchanting. Statmann
Sad for the conservatives in the diocese as Vono does not share the same gospel as they, but rather the gay gospel:
http://www.stpaulsrome.it/english/views/resolution.html
http://www.allsaintsrome.org/news/pdf/AllSaintsNewsletterOct2003C.pdf
It will now be even more of a divided diocese than it was — until more of the orthodox leave, at which point Blessed Unity and Reconciliation will occur! ; > )
The Episcopalians have the right to enforce their ever-changing doctrine among themselves but what strikes me is their big seminaries (Seabury-Western and General) are closing or about to and they’re skimming off liberal RC priests (probably just as well that they go, though). (Vono’s at least a former seminarian.)
[i] Slightly edited. [/i]
The fact is many faithful reasserting churches, priests, and laity had already left the diocese since their previous bishop left for Rome. There are some reasserters left but as in most Dioceses they are a small minority.
This election is stunning in that the candidate with a terrible history did so well in the first ballot. The two reasserter candidates never had a chance and the fear was the worse candidate was in the lead and might get elected….if so, I suspect there would further exodus from the diocese as there might be now.
I do hope the reasserting laity find out how their priests voted, especially in the first ballot. It is quite important to find this out. Clergy are quite good at slight of hand and keeping the laity in the dark. But I bet their deputies to the electing convention will be proud of their choice and quite open and vocal about itl. As clergy, are also good at getting people who will vote in agreement with them, if the laity voted for the candidate it is likely the priest do so also. It really is not that hard to figure out…and if the priest is an honest the priest will have no problem saying who they voted for. The more prevarication the more likely you will not like their answer.
But it is time to find out. Like in Upper SC, it was the clergy who are mostly liberal the laity are not…but the clergy got what they wanted because they know how to work the system and Henderson made sure who he allowed into his diocese.
Time to realize this fact. Bishops and their Canons to the Ordinary are the gate keepers of dioceses. If you wonder how such liberal priests got into your diocese, it is because the Bishop and his/her gate keeper (deployment officer) wanted them in the diocese.
It was not an accident. It was an intentional decision. Control who the priests are and you can control the political theological direction and agenda of the diocese. This is the case at General Convention these days.
Learn who is the Bishop’s gate keeper in your diocese….it will help you to understand why your diocese is going in the direction it is going. Many of your questions will then answer themselves.
#4, MichaelSean, Thanks for the explanation. I just noticed how the vote changed after the first ballot. If it is as you say, the Bishop and the Canon are the gatekeepers of the diocese, then I would say that the Diocese of SC is in good hands at the moment. Not to the mention the strong standing committee and chancellor we have.
Here the reasserters are a definite majority and the revisionists are a vocal but small minority (ie The Episcopal Forum of South Carolina).